Coming with kids? Visit Essel World

If you are coming to Mumbai with kids, then spending a day at Essel World is a great way to spend a day out. It is not just a cheap one day thrill for its visitors but it is an awesome theme park that can stand up well against other great theme parks all around the world.

It is located in North Mumbai, just a few kilometers outside city limits at Gorai, situated on a green landscaped, island on an area of 64 acres. It can be reached by ferry from Gorai creek or Marve beach. Alternately you can drive down by Western Express Highway, take the Bhayender turn and reach Gorai Island.

Essel World offers over thirty four thrilling and scintillating rides, games and amusements, guaranteed to pep you up.

Besides these rides there are also coin-operated games, like Crazy Shuttle, Derby Racer, Aqua Blasta, Water Lazer etc.

For the food lovers, Essel World caters to all palates. Whether your choice is quick pizza or a bhel-puri or a leisurely Chinese meal, one outlet or other, spread throughout the park, is sure to appeal to you.

Essel World has recently started Wet World (a park within the park) with separate entry charges. This has six water-related rides.

The park opens everyday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. During school holidays, the park is open up to 9 p.m.

Mumbai's Art and entertainment

Right from the very moment of its conception in 1978, the Prithvi Theatre, at Juhu Church road, situated in Mumbai, has been committed to the development of theatre in India. The 200-seat theatre was initially built to help develop a professional (primarily Hindi) theatre. Over the years Prithvi Theatre has consistently broadened and evolved its concept of what the development of theatre might mean. The various projects it has taken up, supported and managed as a consequence reflect this constant desire to learn and grow and contribute to theatre in India.


The Open Circle is an artist initiative- formed in 1999. The Open Circle aims to create a platform for a meaningful dialogue on an intercultural level, on the issues most pertinent to the present day cultural and political environment. They provides the schedule art festivals in the city.
To know more about their activities refer http://www.opencirclearts.org/


Cymroza Art Gallery at 72, Bhabubhai Desai road is a contemporary Indian arts and crafts gallery. They host exhibitions by painters, sculptors, print makers, crafts persons, ceramists and photographers, and also hosts lectures and discussions on the arts.


National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA)'s aims to establish, a national centre for the preservation of India's cultural legacy in the arts of performance and communication, by systematic audio-visual recording of its classical and folk arts. Visit them at - http://www.ncpamumbai.com/



The Fine Arts Society promotes and encourages cultural activities, fosters and develops music, dance and other fine arts of cultural India.. Check their activities at http://www.fineartschembur.com/ for Information about the academy, facilities, achievements, membership and working calendar


Upaasana at Chembur,conducts classes in Indian classical dances for an eight year Certificate course and also imparts advanced training in Bharatanatyam & Mohiniyattom. They also have other services, including dance and drama performances, courses in personality development. Check out their activities at http://upaasana.com.


Nrityanjali, at Bhandup, is an institute of music, dance, dramatics, personality development & management services. It is a centre of learning. It is also a centre of understanding , thought and action. Nrityanjali's approach is simple and its medium is music , dance and dramatics. Nrityanjali imparts lessons in personality development, management training, Indian dance, music and drama . It also presents and performs the same (dance, music, drama) and tries to reach out to people both Indians and foreigners enabling them to grasp the nuances of the Indian performing arts in its various forms and thus providing people with an enriching experience. Check out the details at http://nrityanjali.org.in


To get any information about the performances of plays, dramas, and operas in the city, and happenings in Mumbai theatre industry., go to Mumbai Theatre Guide - http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/

Eating in Bandra….. Burrp!

There are more than 400 eating places in Bandra! It is the favorite hangout for entertaining and dining. Bandraites are the happy lot because they have food at every corner of the street and it fits every budget.

If you are coming from south Mumbai, the first restaurant on the SV road worth mentioning is Sayba, that serves excellent sea food.

Little further on the same road is Lucky Restaurant at station road that has awesome biryani and kheema" This is one place you should visit to know what a biryani should be like... really mouth watering... Also try out the Kheema-Pav.

As you go further, on the opposite side of the road is Siddarth restaurant. This is a vegetarian restaurant.

On the linking road, there are many restaurants. You will notice that there is usually a cluster of 5 to 6 restaurants in one area.

Sheetal Arch, on Linking road, has been renovated lately and it is a vegetarian restaurant. It is grouped with other restaurants like Shalimar, (moghalai), Great Punjab (they actually have a whole section of the menu dedicated to low cal -oil free food...Proper Punjabi cuisine minus the calories), Seesha (open air lounge on the roof top of shopper’s shop) Asia Wok (a Chinese restaurant on 6th floor of shoppers stop) and Seven (Seven has a good ambience and some surprisingly good DJs. Only sometime crowd control becomes a problem. It is one of the best clubs in Mumbai).

Five minutes walk from Shalimar is Barista at linking road. This one has a nice cappuccino with enough thick foam. It is definitely a hangout spot for National College students, so make sure to figure out the right time to go given your objectives. Good central place in Bandra to meet up...

Turn behind Barista to Water field road and you have Zenzi Bar. It is a good place to hangout with friends. It has nice interiors and decent food. Sundays is a salsa night and they also have exhibitions of upcoming artists around the place. Opposite Zenzi is Subway (they serve healthy, reasonably priced, nutritious and filling sandwiches.)

Two minutes walk from Zenzi is another group of restaurants (all in same building) such as Orchids (a Chinese restaurant.), China gate, (it has excellent Chinese cuisine. Chinese food is very authentic and the place oozes class.) Red Box café (this place has gr8 ambience...you will find cool crowd during nights, the food is not half as bad if your'e in the mood to blow up lots of monies for a standard pasta and some garlic bread.) Caravan Serai.( Caravan above Red Box café is expensive, but superb North West Frontier cuisine, and great atmosphere. As you walk out the main entrance there is pretty good Pan for the taking.)

Two minutes walk from Red Box Café is Seijo (a Chinese on the rooftop above ICCI bank, It has gr8 ambience and good music.) on the back lane of Seijo is Poison. (Poison at patkat marg, is the hip-hop spot on Thursdays! really feels like a good club, the DJ Booth is surrounded by PLASMA's the dance floor is well designed and service is great and always something good happening with a great crowd...)

Another two minutes walk from Seijo and there is Moti Mahal. This restaurant has been renovated lately and serves Mogalai cuisine. Next to moti Mahal is Amici. (This place not only has gelato that tastes great but also, healthy. Besides the regular sinful chocolate based flavors, they have rare flavors like lime and seasonal specials. They also host fat free and sugar free gelatos to ease the guilt.) also there is Stomach, a Chinese fast food joint and Zaika, that serve moghlai cuisine.

Turn right from Moti mahal to Turner Road. Ten minutes walk from Moti Mahal is another group of open air restaurants such as Pot Pourri. (One of the good old hangouts...the food never disappoints.) Saibaan, (for sizzlers) Tiffin (for Chinese), Lemon Grass.(Chinese and Thai cuisine. Gr8 ambience) Gets crowded on weekends, so reach there early.

Opposite Pot Pourri is the lane that leads towards Pali road. Pali has gr8 number of restaurants. Purple haze, good food and good ambience. Thaiban, papa's and basilico are all on the same stretch. 'ThaiBan has amazing Thai food!!! Now that they've renovated the place, it rocks! 'Papa Pancho' for all authentic Punjabi stuff. Also, newly arrived is The Bagel Place, small, "New York style" place, great couches, decent bagels. Great to hang out. Jinnies also in Pali, serves seafood, great interiors, got a bead vendor located inside the hotel for shopping till your food is served. Discover Waffles, next to Papa Panchos - for savory and meal-style waffles,

My favourite low key after work kind of pub is place called Boat Club which is also in Pali market road. Scotch is affordable, Prawns Koliwada/Tandoori rocks, Sound levels that won't make you deaf, and best of all – unpretentious

'Soul Fry', near Pali Market,also has good sea food and live band on Monday nights. And I must say, the singers are really good! 5 Spice has "The wildest Desserts" Well this place has awesome food and that is true. The servings are huge. One serving is sufficient for 4 people you must try there. Another place for Parsi food, just opposite the new 5 Spice, is Ashmick's Snack Shack.

Papa Pancho Da Dhaba at amdbedkar road has a good meal, good portion and decent quality of food. I would go there again if I was in the mood for Indian. Its super value for money as well.

And lets not forget Bandra's own "khau galli" off Carter Rd with open air options galore, starting right from CCD to Crepe Station, Kwik Wok, Kareem's, MaeB's, Soy (Chinese section of Shatranj with a rooftop seating section), Olives (other than Out of the Blue that's already

Out of the Blue near union park, is known for its fondues, must try – desi fondue (am personally not to fond of bland food so this one appealed to me), sizzlers and pasta ( you can make your own pasta), a good meal for two should cost around Rs.1200 -1500 with a couple of cocktails thrown in. got a decent wine list too if interested. It has good music too. It has great offers for ladies who lunch on a particular day with things like manicure, tarot reading, etc thrown in and buffet lunches which are reasonably priced.

There's another great dessert place off Carter Road, Bandra, Mumbai. Called 'Amore'- its a gelateria (an Italian ice-cream parlour.Gelato is an Italian frozen dessert made from milk (or also soy milk) and sugar, combined with other flavourings).
Will recommend it to everyone... get your senses blown!

'Tamarind'- on Pali hill. Is opposite Fab India (clothes). It is a small place but great food..(.from continental to kheema pav types)...the drinks (non-alcoholic) are good too.

Hey guys...you should check out Mama Mia! It in Ambedkar road, has gelato for deserts. It has 24 flavours of low fat gelato...was tough to choose from, and the staff even give you unlimited free tasters! I loved the forest berry yogurt and orange cheesecake gelato. The kit kat sundae is to die for. It has a cute open air place and is nice place to hang out in the evenings.

Le Chocolat Lounge KBN (Linking Road). Tucked away on the ground floor in the rear of the building, the façade is deceptively cool. Frosted glass hiding the wickedness within

Hawaiian shack at 16th road is Overall, a good place for...lots of drinks - some food - and, maybe, a little leg shaking... scene. What sets it apart - The Music. A great collection of 60s to 90s music, largely rock (Floyd, Dire Straits, U2 etc. etc.) but with some soft rock and pop, especially early on in the evening. The music also indicates why it is so popular with the 30s crowd - they are all mouthing, and later in the evening shouting the lyrics!! So, a good place for that evening out with friends - especially if you are into the rock-scene, and aren’t looking for too much sophistication.

Temptation at hillroad "has Great interior-deco!" Just went there there with my brother and friends. The staff is very nice and very fast. You get a big beer jug for 280 bucks. The food is nice and hot and comes very fast. There is a jukebox where you can put in 5 bucks for a song with all kinds of music but with a disappointing selection nonetheless. 1 thing I like about the place is that you can go inside from the Temptations entrance to Pulse and to Independence Cafe. Clean loo as well, which we all know is very important. Young hot crowd as well...

Shiv sagar 16th road is a south Indian restaurant. Loved the sambar, good crisp dosas and masala dosas. Tasty side dishes like coconut chutney and sambar. Beware of rava dosas - better to have it there itself than having it parceled

Good luck restaurant opp mehboob studio is a quick fast food joint, could be a better kitchen plus u can get some over the counter groceries.. if you live in bandstand and are too lazy to go get food and want to settle for some 'local' pao and burgers .. oh and only if u're in the area and nothing else is around.. don’t dress up, its just a local fast food place

Café coffee day at bandstand and carter road for hot happy cup of coffee! This is a place for Coffee lovers! And especially Cafe Coffee Day at Carter road is pretty good. What with the sea just few feet away! I usually love to go and watch the sunset, or sometimes I go with my friends for hot chocolate after dinner. The service is very good as the staff brings the coffee to you and you don't need to go to get it. One can sit inside or outside The choice is yours. So when you feel a need for a hot cup of happy coffee. Café Coffee day is the place to be. Take a sip today!

One place in Bandra east, Highway Gomantak is in Gandhi nagar Bandra east "A must go for all fish lovers!" It is one of the best places in Mumbai to enjoy gomatak / malwani food. The food is like home cooked and the taste would linger on for a long time to come. It is a khanawali in its true sense. It has small tables, quick, efficient but impersonal servers. But the food makes up for everything. Food is GOOD.

Pure in Taj land ends, bandstand is the new shi-shi place in town. They claim to be a healthy, all-organic restaurant with a keen focus on fresh, no-preservative ingredients. First off, the ambience in this restaurant is pretty amazing. The restaurant has been very purposefully bifurcated into an area with a more dim, darker atmosphere (better for a date), and a white, well-lit atmosphere (families, business, etc.). The wine list was satisfactory, The service was excellent and attentive, as each dish was described to us in great detail. The food, I must say, was spectacular.

Besides eating in fancy restaurants, there are some interesting places on road side too, if you don’t care much for hygiene and dust flying into your plate from the traffic wheezing by and your intestine has already been thickened by unhealthy food.

You can stroll in Bandra and try few roadside food.

Try Jai Jawan, Opposite National College for the Koliwada type of Rawas fish and some lip smacking prawns. It is open after 7pm

For Lonavala type of Wada Pav, try that wadapavwala outside national College on Linking road.

For Sandwiches try Jai sandwich outside National College, or on 36th road.

For bite-size soft Idlis, try the Idliwallah on 36th road Bandra. He is there only from 11am to 4pm

For Non-veg Rolls try Qualty at Linking road

For Tava cooked Brain masala and chicken and Paya soup, try the stall outside Telephone exchange opposite Citywalk.

And ofcourse, there are many bhel puriwallah ,dosawalals, dabelis, sugarcane juice, fruit juice stalls, coconut water, etc, the list is endless.

One thing is clear.. you see Bandraites smiling? Well.....! they are well fed !

Agony of ' Wedding Shopping ' in Mumbai

“Will you be at home? My packet from the designer will arrive today, can you collect it for me, please?” said my niece, as she headed to yet another shopping centre.

With only few days left for her wedding, she was busy shopping all day, sometimes skipping lunch and missing all the luxuries of easy life that she is normally used to! Every hour she would check her shopping list and plan the next move. Life is tough in a city like Mumbai. Traffic jams, pollution and crowded streets can squeeze out the energy off you. Shopping in Mumbai can be a nightmare! But still, every young NRI dreams of coming to India to shop for their most important day of their life.

A chat with my niece reveals what you can expect when you embark on the special journey to your trousseau shopping to India.


Why did you choose to come to India for your trousseau shopping?

For Indian clothes, India has the biggest variety (obviously). You can properly shop around and check out the various designers/styles/trends that are out there, instead of depending on the limited styles that might come to your city. Also, I live in Asia so traveling to India is very convenient.

If the designers and the sales people came to your place of origin, would you buy from them? Why?

For my bridal wear? No. For my bridal outfits, I was very fussy (aren’t all brides?). I wanted to take a look at absolutely everything out there and then choose what I wanted for my big day  But if I really liked a particular designer, and he/she came to my city, and I really liked an outfit, then yes, I would buy from them for my other trousseau wear. But since I live so close to India, I still prefer traveling there and taking a look from their full collection. Also, the prices abroad are often higher than the prices offered within India.

Which is the best city in India to shop for? Why?

DELHI!!! Well, I’ve only actually been to Mumbai and Delhi for shopping, and between the two, DELHI was definitely, without a doubt, better. I noticed that although Mumbai is very often the city most Sindhis go to for the “trendier” stuff, the same stuff (and a good deal more) is available in Delhi. Delhi had a MUCH larger variety, with styles from all over India, the trendy, the traditional, the funky. From the large variety of styles/outfits available in Delhi, only a small percentage are actually sent to Mumbai, and that too, a few months later. The collections I found in Mumbai were so limited compared to the ones I saw in Delhi. Also, there are more designers based in Delhi than in Mumbai.

What are the different things that you need to shop from India?

Bridal wear; accessories like bindis, chindis, bangles, anklets, handbags, etc; Saris, suits, lehengas, etc.; Wedding Invitations; Silverware, puja items, Wedding fan and the pillow cover over which you do “dattar”… For Sindhi weddings, the shopping list is endless…

What are the things u would rather buy from your place of origin?

Western clothes and western accessories.

How long did u stay in India to complete the shopping?

My first trip was for five weeks, when I bought my trousseau and ordered my bridals… The second trip was for 2 weeks, where I picked up all my bridals..

What are the hurdles you faced during your stay in Mumbai? In Delhi?

OH THE LIST IS ENDLESS, I don’t know where to start… for trousseau shopping in India, you need LOADS of patience. It gets incredibly wearisome. The tailors were completely unreliable; outfits were never ready when they’re meant to be, the fittings were never-ending, the traffic was frustrating, some of my ordered outfits turned out wrong, and on top of it all, I fell sick.

Was the shopping experience good or bad? Why?

Ummm… actually, the shopping experience was not as bad as I thought it would be… (because of the horror stories I heard, I was expecting much worse)..

Whom would you trust the most with the trousseau shopping?

I would take anyone whose style I appreciated; someone who understood my style, what I would wear versus what I would buy, regret, and never wear.

Any embarrassing moment u faced during your shopping?

Hehehe, yes… I was in a boutique, I tried on a lehenga in the changing room. It was too big for me so I held it tight on the side and walked out of the room, on to a small “pedestal” so my mom could have a good look. The sales girl took hold of the lehenga and tried to pin it tight… accidentally, she let go and the whole lehnga fell down around my ankles.. the whole boutique turned and saw…

Would u recommend your friends to come to India to shop? Why?

Yes, for Indian clothes. As irritating as the experience is, it is still your wedding day, and you still need to look your best.

Did your shopping experience match your expectations? Why?

Well… no. I actually expected the experience to be a lot worse. I heard a lot of horror stories. My cousin got her wedding outfit the day before the ceremony, and the colors came out horribly wrong and completely off… because of all the horror stories I heard, of girls getting their bridal outfits the day before the occasion, and the outfit turning out a horrible color, etc. etc.

What advice would u give to new shopper who is thinking of coming to India to shop?

BEWARE!

:)no seriously, know that nothing will turn out the way you want it to, or go according to schedule. Be patient and flexible. Eat well everyday even if you are too busy to take time off. Every week or so take a day off from shopping to have fun. Eat pani puri, go for a movie, catch up with friends, whatever…just take it easy :)

Where to go for wedding shopping in Mumbai?

Confused?

When in Mumbai, always be prepared for heat, crowd and traffic.

Many people prefer to come from different parts of the world to Mumbai for their wedding shopping because of diversity of design and latest trends.
There is a lot to choose from and Mumbai is a shopping Paradise.

Most of the wedding shopping can be done from Juhu Tara road, Santa Cruz (West), Colaba, Kemps Corner, Lokhanwallah complex or Dadar

For your our wedding outfits,

You may check out some of my favorite ones:

Friendship Sarees at Santacruz.
Queens road at Marine lines have rows of saree shops.
Juhu Tara road has line of designer shops on both sides of the road.
Lokhanwalah Complex is another lane to check out.
Benzer at Breach Candy
Ogaan at Colaba
Courtyard at Colaba
Kimaya at Juhu
Quorum at Phenix Mills, Parel
Ensemble at Lions Gate
Atria Mall , worli
Inorbit Mall, malad
Oberoi Towers at Nariman point
Aishwarya Desigh studio, Linking road
Silk India, Masid Galli, Dadar
Kamdhenu, 4 Bungalows, Andheri

Some of the designers to check out:

Ritu Kumar at Parel
Private collections at Pedder Road
Designer studio at Pedder road.
Kavita Bhartia at Ogaan
Payal Singhaal at Altamount road
Deepika Gehani at Juhu
Menka Mirpuri at Shivaji Park
Manish Arora at Courtyard
Bhartis’ at Lokhanwallah complex
Satya paul at Juhu Tara road
Tarun Tahiliani at Bandra
Vikram Padnis at Juhu
Mango at Linking road



for Dress Materials

Elco Arcate in Hill road, Bandra
Gandhi Market in Kings’ circle
Mahesh market at Tardeo
Sagar at Linking road
Saroj at khar
Lokhanwallah
Santacruz
Dadar


For shoes and foot wear and handbags:

There are variety of shoe shops at Linking road, Kemp Corner, Lokhanwakkah complex and Colaba.

Some of the shoes stores you could check out
Metro
Lords
Citywalk
Regal
Catwalk


Some of the stores for designer handbags to check out

Cheemo at Kemps’corner
Boudoir London shop at Juhu
Calzzare at Nariman point
Da Milano at Quorum, Parel
Hidesigh at Kemps corner


The places to check out for bindhis, bangles and artificial jewellary

Past lane, Colaba
Santa Cruz Market
or if you have strength to walk, try Bhuleshwar

For mehendi and hair assessories

Beauty Art centre at khar, SV road.
Santa Cruz Market
Dadar

For Men's clothes

Try Millionare at Juhu
Standard at Santa Cruz
Charagh Din at Colaba

Accessories for Mandap and car decoration

Dadar market (west) near the station
Santa Cruz market
Khar market
Bhuleshwar

For gold and diamond jewellary
Javery bazaar
Turner road and waterfeild road, Bandra
Panchratna, Opera house.

Some of them to check out for great designs
Tanishq at Linking road
Amparapali at Oberoi towers
Adora at Turner road, Bandra
Anmol at turner road, bandra
Naqsh at Panch ratna, Opera House
Notandas & Sons at waterfield road, Bandra



For wedding cards

C P tank road (behind Opera house)
Girguan
Dadar (west)

For wedding souvenirs

Archies
Silver stores at Khar or Dadar
Big bazaar at Parel
Bhuleshwar
The Bombay store, Fort
Santa Cruz market.
Art d’inox, Raghuransh estate, Parel
Ravissant, Kemps corner
Frazer and Haws, Bandra

Wedding Management services

Seven steps, Jivan Kiran, s.V. oad. Bandra
Touchwood entertainment.


Travel by cool cab (a blue car), pay by meter or you can rent which may cost you around Rs1200 fro 8 hours.
You can call for cool cab service from any part of the Mumbai. You can reach them within 15 minutes
Call at 38246216/38227006/38016622/38649955.

If you want to send a visitor on a shopping trip or sightseeing tour of Mumabi, but don’t have car or driver, call Titoo Singh, a Cool Cab taxi driver and tour guide. He can be found on the Oberoi taxi Stand at Nariman Point or call him o 2444067/9821029783. He knows the tourist interest points and fashion shops in Mumbai. He charges by hour so ask him his rate in advance. Need to negotiate with him a little.

Shopping in Mumbai City

Most of the people, whom I know, come to Mumbai for Shopping. Mumbai is a shopper’s paradise. The shops and bazaars offer a truly amazing diversity of goods, as well as being worth a visit in their own right.

Mumbai sells everything from expensive European antiques to local spices by way of electrical goods and silks. In particular, it is the centre of the Indian clothing trade and caters for all tastes and budgets.

Likewise, Mumbai is a major centre of the diamond trade and for those with strong nerves and long pockets, who know what they are doing, it is possible to pick great bargains.

Main shopping area is around Dadar T.T, and if you go there in the evening, the place is packed. Good cotton clothes, saris, children's clothes galore and a general atmosphere of fun shopping.


Bandra, the so-called "Queen of Suburbs" is the residential abode of film stars, industrialists and the likes, of Mumbai. Linking Road joins Bandra to Khar and is lined up on both sides with showrooms for the elite. But the striking contest here is the pavement selling, a world of contrast from a posh showroom. Hill Road has number of shops lining on both sides of the streets. Elco market and Globus have good range of clothes. Turner road has great number of jewellery stores. Shoppers’ stop and Crystal shopping mall at linking road sell wide variety of goods. Kenworth Mall at Linking road have wide range of shoes’ stores.

Lokhanwallah Complex, in Versova, Andheri, has one long street, that is lined with stores on both sides of the street and it sells wide variety of things that suits every budget.

More trendy and costly shopping is found at Breach Candy and Kemps Corner, down the hill from the Hanging Gardens.


‘Fashion Street’, on M Gandhi Road between Cross Maidan and Azad Maidan, is a row of market stalls where some very good bargains can be found. Fashion street sells export rejects, and export "over-runs" which are often excellent quality clothes at knock down prices. Bargain very hard, and with any luck one can reduce the sales man's opening offer down to a more realistic price. Shoppers should trust to luck and their eye, haggle fiercely and hope to be rewarded with an exceptional bargain.



Shopping For Handicrafts Very close to Gateway of India, there is the main government emporium, Cottage Industries, which is reasonably well stocked with a cross section of handicrafts and clothes, and prices are fixed. In the little streets immediately opposite to the government emporium, there are lots of handicraft and silver shops, and a couple of good, but pricey, antique shops.



For those who like to shop in comfort, The Oberoi and Taj Hotels both boast air-conditioned shopping malls with an interesting range of boutiques. The shopping arcades of almost all five-star hotels offer a good variety of up-market shops and you can shop for clothes, shoes, leatherwear, jewellery, and good quality handicrafts. Prices will be higher than outside, but the choice in these shopping arcades is excellent, and if one is a canny shopper, one can always window shop there, before heading off to the markets.


For the book lovers, "Crossword" has its branches spread all over Mumbai, and they sells books, magazines, records, CDs, greeting cards

One of Mumbai's most popular bookshops is the tiny "Strand Book Stall" which has helpful knowledgeable staff, a comprehensive range of books, and if they don't have something, they will order it within a day or so. It is quite an achievement to leave the shop without buying something!

There are several excellent bookshops, and street stalls galore, many of the latter concentrated around Flora Fountain where a persistent search may reveal interesting volumes among the pulp thrillers.


In Mumbai, there has been mushrooming of Shopping malls in recent times, and they are found almost everywhere and stock every thing that women, men and children could ask for. Some of them, worth the mention are:

InOrbit mall at Malad

Infinity Mall at Versova

City Mall at Versova

Nirmal Lifestyles at Mulund

RR Mall at Mulund

Eternia at Breach Candy

Big Bazaar at Pheonix Mills

Cross Roads at Tardeo

Atria at Worli.

Benzer at Breach Candy

Shopper's Stop has branches all over Mumbai

Central mall at Vashi

Alfa mall at Irla



No trip to Mumbai is complete, however, without a visit to the bazaars –

Chor Bazaar, Mutton Street, near Sir JJ Road, for bric-a-brac, furniture and junk, It is an antique-hunter's delight. Its name literally means "thieves market," as this was where stolen goods were once sold. Today, it is best known for antique furniture and quaint collectors’ items sold at throwaway prices

Zaveri Bazaar, off Abdul Rahman Street, for jewellery, Dhaboo Street Bazaar, is famous for its diamond, gold and silver jewelery.


Dhaboo Street, for leather goods

Masjit Bunder for spices

Crawford Market, Lokmanya Tilak Road and MRA Road (north of Victoria Terminus) for flowers, fruit and vegetables. This is where you'll find the best Alphonso mangoes in the city along with hundreds of varieties of fruits and vegetables. The flower market is a riot of red, yellow, pink, marigold and purple. Bargaining is expected, and you can take home most items at 50% of their quoted price.

Mangaldas Market, off Sheikh Memon Street in south Mumbai, and Gandhi Market at King’s Circle are massive indoor market selling every conceivable type of cloth. Look for the bolts of beautiful Indian silk and cotton. The key to success there is patience and astute haggling.

Night Life in South Mumbai

No matter what time of night you venture out, there are bound to be other's going about some business or other. The city has always led the nightlife scene in India and there are bars and clubs to suit every taste; jazz dens compete with Salsa, Tabla dance fusions and Funk. Mumbai 's alternative but decidedly yuppie crowd meets at the Ghetto Bar before heading down to the gay, glitzy or groovy clubs around Colaba and Juhu.

Night is when Mumbai really starts hopping. If you're in south Mumbai try Polyester for some nostalgic '80s song and dance.

Hawaiian Shack has a boat shaped bar and waiters in straw hats with 1980’s pop-up repeats.

Visit the pricey high-ceiling two-floor Indigo voted among 60 top restaurants in the world. The restaurant serves spicy Thai and Oriental food.

Celebrities can be spotted at Athena, the cigar lounge restaurant, with low yellow sofas and opaque glass counters.

Try Gaylords at Colaba too. An established bar since 1942, it has two levels with a mezzanine-floor bar - the menu card here is reasonably priced.

For a fun alfresco experience not far from the Taj, wander up a few floors to the trendy rooftop Koyla a hookah bar and restaurant where white tents flap in the breeze amidst leafy vegetation and lots of cosy low sofas and cushioned corners. Good mix of music, mood and food

Nightclubs are the ultimate great escape – people on the prowl all looking for a good time. The atmosphere is smoky, the lighting other-worldly and the music, always sexy. It’s hardly a wonder then that for the bold and the beautiful, it’s the most socially accepted way to just “chill out” and “hang loose.”